Alright. Why would I sell it? And would I be violating the will? These are things I do not need to explain. I simply raised the same question again: if he did not want it, then I would sell it to another tower, though I am not foolish enough to threaten him directly with something like that.
In the end, despite the temptation of the book, he refused. So I rephrased my request from "selling the book to him" to "selling it to towers outside the Empire through him" in exchange for full benefit from its contents.
Somehow, it worked after a detailed agreement.
This meant that instead of fighting the Tower's neutrality, I turned "Malcolm" into a contractor for the Empire. It would have been better if he had accepted one of the plans I prepared earlier, but unfortunately he rejected them all, and in the end he agreed to what I thought of during the conversation.
First: the book will be distributed and its pages sold to mage towers outside the Empire for money; 60% to the Emperor and 40% to the Mage Tower. A minimum price was set for each page, and the pages that are still "puzzles" will have a higher price.
The existence of a minimum price prevents Malcolm from manipulating the deal. In return, any page sold for more than the base price will be a reward for the Blue Tower, in addition to the right to use the knowledge and sell it in whatever way the tower sees fit. They might monopolize some things because of that, but every discovery or invention resulting from the book's pages must send part of its profits to the Emperor. It resembles an "intellectual property rights" policy. I provide the theory, they handle the rest, and I make profit without intervention.
The second step is what comes after the sale. In exchange for the fame, reputation, and priority that the tower will gain, it will carry out certain tasks. The 40% share includes hiring all the mages of the Blue Tower, the distribution returns, and the capital used.
This step is actually simple: using 20% of the profits to purchase food resources from the kingdoms they travel to and return them to the Empire. Thanks to the teleportation gates that the Blue Tower will repair, great distances will be crossed in record time. With the flying speed of sixth-tier mages and above, the time will shrink even further, though reaching agreements and negotiations may take days or weeks, and I truly do not have the luxury of time.
Thus we reach the final agreement, which is the real reason for using the Blue Tower specifically, even though the Red Tower possesses the same level of loyalty. The reason is that the Blue Tower has a large stock according to the reports, and that stock will be used as the cover for this meeting.
After the negotiations, the Tower Master will grant 74% of his food stock, magical stones, and gold, and he will distribute 25% of the food share to the capital as if it were an "Imperial order".
The rest will be transferred to the treasury, and I have decided to use it to calm the army, while the gold and magical stones will remain for other uses.
All of this was placed in a magical contract that prevents Malcolm from betraying it. I did not reach an agreement that completely satisfies me, but it is better than nothing, even though I am giving up the monopoly of "teleportation arrays" that distinguished the Empire, and even the method of producing "storage tools" that will be sold to the Dwarf Kingdom.
"Well, it does not matter. This is just a book from the first chamber's vault."
[With this, you prevented the fall of the Astra Empire.]
"Cube? It is rare for you to speak suddenly. What do you mean?"
[I am simply somewhat impressed by the deal. You did not sell the book once and finish it; instead, you made the Empire a "future partner" in every magical invention that comes out of the laboratories of the Blue Tower or even other kingdoms. This ties the future of science on the continent to the survival of Astra's throne. If the throne falls, the legal legitimacy of these contracts disappears.]
"And what is the importance of that if the Emperor himself can be replaced?"
[At least the Empire will remain.]
"It would have remained even without this deal. The nobles will not allow it to fall; they only want to change the blood sitting under the crown, not overthrow the Empire." And that is what annoys me. What plan do they have to fix all this chaos they caused?
[But betting on the "time factor" here is the most tense point. Even though you used teleportation gates and the speed of mages, you do not have the luxury of weeks. Using the Blue Tower's stock is merely an "adrenaline injection" for the dying body of the Empire. You are taking a loan secured by assets from Malcolm to immediately suppress the capital's hunger.]
"Yes. This move makes Malcolm a venture investor with everything he owns. The risks are mutual; he must hurry while I must prove my rule. If I fail to stabilize the throne, the Blue Tower will lose its strategic stock forever."
Distributing 25% of the food under an "Imperial order" is a political manipulation of the public image; making the tower appear as if it "submitted" to my will may give the nobles the impression that I possess a secret means of pressure over the mages. At the same time, directing the rest of the resources to the army closes the greatest security gap. A soldier who sees gold and wheat flowing from the royal treasury will not listen to the orders of a rebellious duke—or so I hope. As for the knights, chivalry only appears when the stomach is full. Even so, sacrificing the monopoly of teleportation arrays and storage tools is an extremely heavy price.
But as the Cube said, this plan is merely an "adrenaline injection". Adrenaline does not heal the wound; it only gives the body the ability to fight for a short time before collapse. I am now in a race against time. Once the tower's stock I received runs out, the wheel of the economy must already be turning, otherwise hunger will return to knock on the doors harder than before.
[You seem deep in thought. Let me help analyze your thoughts.]
"I am thinking about the next step. War is not an option; attacking one of the rebellious sectors would be nothing but useless recklessness. It will not serve as an example to anyone, and the stock may not support such an operation. But I must do something, and the Emperor's advisor is nothing but a useless puppet."
[So what have you concluded?]
"I am thinking of directing the army, which is now receiving part of its salary, to assist the security forces in suppressing the gangs that have formed. What do you think?"
[Striking "internal chaos" instead of "political rebellion"?]
[This step is clever. Attacking a rebellious sector means civil war and draining the stock you obtained with difficulty. Directing the army to suppress gangs strikes several birds with one stone.]
"What are the advantages?"
[First: restoring prestige. The army needs a small and easy victory to raise its morale after a period of idleness and hunger. Second: food security. The gangs are the ones stealing caravans and controlling the black market. Eliminating them means that the food distributed by the tower will actually reach those who deserve it instead of being seized. Third: popular legitimacy. The people may hate the Emperor, but they hate criminals and thieves more. When people see the army cleansing the streets, they will feel safer and have greater trust in your words.]
"What about the negatives? I would prefer you tell me the risks."
[The gangs that formed in the absence of law rarely operate alone; they are usually the dirty arms of nobles and ministers.]
"Meaning I may face a silent rebellion."
[Yes. There will be a strong reaction.]
"What if I used the knights?"
[The equation changes here. It becomes merely cleaning the house.]
Then the capital will witness a sea of blood. The number of soldiers may be large, but the number of knights is limited. I think I will send each knight with a squad of soldiers to every city still under imperial rule for monitoring and protection as well.
"It seems excessive to move a knight squad just for gangs."
It truly is excessive. A single fourth-stage knight can defeat ten thousand trained warriors, and a mage of the same level can eliminate even more. Since they still repeat the slogan of chivalry, it may still be possible to use them, but this method feels excessive, especially issuing an execution order.
[Granting such authority to a knight could be dangerous.]
"I know, and that is why I hesitate. They may begin killing without reason, or simply out of suspicion, or use the orders as an excuse."
[If I can obtain reports about all the gangs, I can help narrow the scope of the cleansing so that civilians are not affected.]
"The same problem remains. I do not truly trust knights who lost the meaning of their chivalry."
[If you summon the knights, I can help analyze the personality of each individual. Like that female knight who helped the commoners without orders; she may be suitable for this kind of mission.]
"Genius."
[I know.]
Fortunately, I had summoned the Knight Commander. When he arrives, I will issue an order to gather all the palace knights. As for the other scattered knights or those within the army, we will wait for their return and cleanse the capital first before the rest of the cities. Narrowing the scope of reform will help as well.
I did not wait long. After returning to the office, I found the Knight Commander "Kai" already waiting. The Cube told me that one vibration means the person is "suitable", and two vibrations mean "not suitable". The person will be evaluated after asking some questions. It will reveal that the Emperor has changed, but that does not matter much.
After the greeting the knight offered, I sat behind my desk. Silence settled, then I spoke.
"Knight Commander Kai, imagine that the enemy has breached the walls of the capital. The palace is burning and I am inside it. Your house is burning and your family is inside it. The distance is equal, and the time is only enough to save one side. If you save me, your family dies. If you save your family, the Emperor dies. What will you choose?"
"Your Majesty, of course I will—" Kai stopped.
Good. He realized the question was deeper than it seemed. My death would not mean the fall of the Empire, only the transfer of rule. But would he choose his family or the Emperor?
"Your Majesty, I will follow the orders that made me stand away from your side. If there is an enemy, I will cut off his head before he reaches you." Kai knelt and hid his face.
Three vibrations. That means he is not certain of what he says.
"Kai, I remember you have a beautiful little daughter. I heard you love her greatly. Let us imagine she became a knight, and she was the one who would cut off my head. Would you kill her?"
"I would sacrifice my life for Your Majesty." He did not hesitate.
That means he would not kill her; his family matters more than the Emperor's fate. I liked that.
One vibration. Suitable. But let us not rush.
"Then Kai, what kind of chivalry do you follow? And what is a knight in your view?"
"He is the sword of the lord that moves by his will."
"Does the sword have the right to choose his family over his lord? Then what kind of sword are you?"
"I am the sword that will never betray the Empire."
Meaning you would betray your lord if it were for the Empire. Fine. Using a sword requires someone skilled, otherwise he will cut himself. There is no escape from that if the lord is extremely weak. And clearly someone of the seventh tier like him is not an ordinary sword.
"Stand. Let us return to the first question. What would you choose if my death meant the fall of the Empire?"
"I would send someone to help my family, and run quickly to save Your Majesty."
He still cares about his family. This man is remarkable; he does not want to abandon them.
"I heard some knights went to help the commoners without orders. You were not unaware of that, correct?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. How would you like me to deal with them?"
"Choose people with the same mindset. Take enough soldiers. This is an Imperial order: eliminate the leaders of the gangs that formed in the capital, and submit reports to me. Whoever surrenders, send him to prison. Whoever resists, eliminate him without hesitation."
"As you command."
I finished writing the order and handed it to him.
"Take this to the Treasury Office to allocate the operation's budget, and send the remaining knights to the Blue Tower to receive some resources. Tell them to guard the caravans and return them to the capital quickly. I do not want mistakes."
"As you command."
Kai took the document and sighed in relief that the questions had ended, yet they continued spinning in his mind even after he left.
There, Cecilion was waiting. His gaze toward Kai was not pleasant. Kai did not return the greeting and left.
Cecilion entered with the news that the ministers had gathered.